Feb 18, 2012

One of the easiest ways to lighten up a pasta dish is to add tons of protein and vegetables to your dish which keeps the portions large and the carbs low and this dish is a perfect example. Be sure to be generous with your Cajun spices, it should have plenty of kick so don't be shy!

I took a knife skills class at Sur La Table this week with my girlfriend and of course I HAD to buy a new knife and cutting board there. I was so excited to put my new skills to work and cut my veggies like a pro with my new knife, a task I would normally dread.

This dish comes together rather quickly once all your vegetables are chopped.

You can make this with shrimp instead of chicken, or use a combination of both. Make this vegetarian by leaving the chicken out or replacing it with tofu and the chicken broth with vegetable broth. You can also make this gluten-free by using brown rice pasta and replacing the flour with 1 teaspoon of corn starch. Hope you enjoy!!

Prep all your vegetables. In a small blender make a slurry by combining milk, flour and cream cheese. Set aside. Season chicken generously with Cajun seasoning, garlic powder and salt.

Prepare pasta in salted water according to package directions.

Heat a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; spray with cooking spray and add half of the chicken. Sauté 5 to 6 minutes or until done, set aside on a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.

this looks delicious--and perfect timing. Our home group just decided on a cajun theme for our meal tomorrow night and I have all the ingredients minus the peppers--off to the store now! Can't wait to try it.

Cajun and Creole spices are not the same. Tony C's makes both. They're not really interchangeable, so I would get the Cajun kind if you want it to taste right. Cajun is spicy- Creole is not...just a distinct savory flavor.

I'm from Louisiana and personally would use Tony Cachere's seasoning for the chicken. Creole and cajun are very similar in seasoning (both usually well spiced and savory); creole more often incorporates tomatoes and cajun relies on roux for the base sauce. The terms are interchangeable for most cooking as there is great overlap in both the dishes, techniques, and ingredients.

I was so excited to see this recipe I made it for dinner tonight! It was super yummy, I've already passed it onto my friends, as I have many of your recipes. Thanks for helping our house be filled with yummy skinny food

I'm new to the website and I fell in love at first sight! I love all the recipes and the pictures and everything I have made so far has been a BIG hit! My family is vegetarian so would you cook the tofu the same way as the chicken or do you have to do it a different way?

Another hit in our household. I made my own Cajun spice to put in this. I've been told that I can make it again, and I have to agree. It looks like there won't be anything left over for lunch tomorrow. That's always a good sign. That's again for this website and all your hard work.

This was great! Easy to throw together and substitutions are simple. Husband said to add to rotation. I know it has been said before but thank you for this website. We were eating these recipes before we started WW and this is how we knew we could succeed. Diet food has come a long way from cottage cheese and Ry-Krisp.

I made this tonight for dinner! It was delicious! I forgot to buy mushrooms so I added a third pepper and an entire onion to add more veggies. I used whole wheat linguine too. My husband loved it. We'll definitely be making this again!

I always like to see comments from people who actually tried the recipe, and I'm convinced that this one isn't just a pretty picture. I'm going to make it tomorrow in honor of my return to WW! My baby is now five weeks old- it's time!

This was DIVINE! I made it for supper tonight. I substituted corn starch for the flour, and used mung bean threads/noodles for me (gluten free) and regular egg noodles for m'honey..and baby bella mushrooms instead of white.

It was to die for. Even my son came downstairs saying whatever I was cooking smelled amazing! Its definitely a keeper & a total winning recipe. Thanks so much! ♥

I make Skinnytaste dishes all of the time but always forget to comment. Tonight I made this recipe and it was delicious (as usual). Perfect for a pasta craving. Whole family loved it (also as usual). Between my mom and I, we've lost 35 lbs on WW since Thankgiving. This is in no small part due to your awesome recipes. Thanks for being proof that lighter food can be delicious!

I made this yesterday for my boyfriend and I. It came out delicious! Only thing I did because I was out of white flour- I used whole wheat flour to create the slurry but I didn't notice anything wrong with how it tasted once it was finished! I also used red meat stir fry on the side (not in my dish) with the cajun seasonings to put in my boyfriends dish because he loves red meat. I put some chicken in his dish too and he said it tasted like a steak/chicken fajita with pasta! We both loved it thank you so much!

I'm vegetarian and have become a master at modifying recipes. I made this recipe as is for my husband and along side his batch I made mine with extra mushrooms (baby bella) and no chicken. Made both with veg broth. WOW. An absolutely perfect and tasty dinner with tons of leftovers for lunches this week. I added a bit of extra cajun seasoning at the end for a little kick. This will definitely become a regular in our house. Very filling for a reasonable number of points. Yet another winner!

This was delicious! I subbed shrimp and andouille sausage for the chicken and it was fantastic. My husband seems to always pick a pasta like this if it's on a menu when we eat out, so he was thrilled that I found a delicious and healthy recipe to make at home. Thanks, Gina!

Just wanted to say THANK YOU GINA for this recipe! Made it last night & it was awesome!! I may have gone overboard with my cajum seasoning so it was spicy but I still couldn't put it down. I'll be having it for lunch & probably the rest of the week b/c it makes so much. DELISH!!! :-)

Made this last night but used half the pasta and half the chicken broth. Left everything else the same. Divided into three larger servings and still pretty calorie/point friendly since the pasta was reduced. I like spicy so need to up the cajun spice more and maybe add some cayenne too. Thanks for a yummy light pasta dish.

In honor of Mardi Gras, I was going to splurge and make Cajun Chicken Pasta for dinner tonight using a recipe from another website... While it probably would have tasted amazing, I calculated the points for it... 31!!! Whoa. Thank goodness for this recipe so I don't have to die tonight from falling off the wagon so hard. Can't wait to try it!

This was so so good!! I love cajun chicken pasta but it is so fattening. This hit the spot perfectly, still that touch of cream and spice, yum!! My husband loved it too and he is hard to please! This will definitely be on rotation!

This looks sooooooo good. I'm definitely going to make this next week. I'm thinking about making mine with chicken and shrimp because I love that combination. From the pics, it looks delicious. I can't wait to try it.

I made this for dinner last night with shrimp and it was fantastic. A keeper for sure. I love the slurry technique and can't wait to try it on some other creamy sauces. I did notice that you listed garlic powder in the recipe but not in the ingredients, I just added it to taste.

Gina you are a genius! This was a hit last night, so much that I was still craving it for lunch! I've lost 18lbs on WW so far, and I contribute a lot of it to your amazing recipes that make eating healthy taste so good!

Gina...I made this last night and there was a party in my mouth! I too am on weight watchers and I have been making it through the tough days with help from your delicious recipes. : )I pinned this on Pintrest and I have recieved 25 re-pins in a matter of minutes!

We had this for dinner last night and it was good, but wow, so much better the next day once the flavors had more time to develop. I make a similar full fat dish, but with Mexican flavors--cilantro, lime, cumin, etc. I think I will use this recipe as a base to recreate it.

I had been craving Cajun Chicken Pasta for weeks now... I was so excited to see your version and know that I could eat and not feel guilty! Made this last night and we all loved it! In to the rotation it goes. Once again, you made me smile. Thank you for all your hard work, Gina!

I made this for company on "Fat" Tuesday and it came out great! I had to double the recipe and only had enough chicken for one batch so I added some sausage, which changed the lightness of the dish, but it still was delicious and not nearly as heavy as other creamy pasta dishes I have made in the past. The flavors were phenom. I will definitely be making it again. Everything from this website always comes out great!

We made this tonight and it was terrific! I love the colors in it. It's such a pretty dish. I used whole wheat Delallo Fusilli pasta which is my absolute favorite and it was perfect in it. Loved the look of it with the curly pasta. The flavor was terrific, mostly because it was so forgiving, making it as spicy as you like. Thanks for this one!!

I came across your blog last night and an hour after that I found my self trying to re-create the fab dish! I subbed plain greek yogurt for the cream cheese & used tomatoes, asparagus, & green peppers for my veggies. It turned out great with the greek yogurt. heads up if you wanna make this dish even skinnier! thank you !

Made this the other night and OMG it's DIVINE!!! I have never raved about a recipe so much as I did this one :) I made it for myself and froze the individual portions for later consumption. Even out of the freezer, reheated it's beyond words *YUM*. Olive Garden should pay you millions and put this on their menu ;)

I just made this for dinner. I did use Tony C. creole seasoning (did not see Cajun seasoning at my store) and it was plenty spicy. I too found the mixture to be too watery for my liking, so I kept adding flour until it was the consistency I desired. Also--because I am a 'sauce' person, I kept the pasta and sauce separate until serving to keep the pasta from completely soaking the sauce up. It turned out perfect and like something I would order at a restaurant. I have a feeling it's going to taste even better as leftovers!

My fiance's fave dish is a creamy cajun chicken pasta at one of our local restaurants, so when I found this I knew I had to make it. Tonight when he walked into the kitchen he was like "this is sooo my style" and when he was finished with dinner he was like "this was the best ever...was this healthy??" Gotta love a skinny dish that makes him question if it was healthy! Thanks Gina!

I made this using 1/3 less fat cream cheese, and shrimp instead of chicken (tossed with 1tsp of EVOO and 1/2tsp creole seasoning - baked at 400deg for 6-7 min till cooked through). I would probably lessen the chicken stock to 1/2C as it was swimming in sauce but it was delicious! I let the sauce reduce with the veggies for 10 min. If you aren't into a lot of sauce I suggest scooping the veggies out and adding the sauce by the scoop full to the pasta until your desired sauce level!

I can't believe this recipe is here today; I just 'cleaned' out my fridge yeterday; and found some fresh pasta and peppers that need to be used up today; and I took out chicken this morning; so there's dinner tonite. Thank you so much.

Gina - this is my first time commenting but you are my hero. I have been using your website for about a year and recommend it to every single person I know. My sister and all of her friends (even their husbands) use it now :-) Every single recipe has been phenomenal. I made this last night. Amazing. The sauce was a little runny (I think I added too much of the juice from the tomatoes) but I just added some cornstarch to thicken it up and it was perfect. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

P.S. I still can't understand why you don't have a show on the Food Network. I've actually stopped watching as I get all of my recipes from you.

This Louisiana couple absolutely loved this dish (as we do with all of your dishes)! I forgot to buy cream cheese at the store so I added a little more flour to thicken up the slurry. Can't wait to try it with cream cheese.

I made this the other night and it was YUMMERS! I didn't use the mushrooms, unfortunately my fiance doesn't like them. I also used a yellow and red pepper because that is what I had on hand. The only thing that I did differently, was right after I removed the chicken I poured a splash of stock to loosen up the bits on the bottom of the pan for more flavor. I will definitely make this again and again! My fiance is very picky when it comes to healthy meals and he loved loved this. Oh yeah I also used whole grain noodles.

The spice must make the dish :(. Followed the recipe to the t but realized too late that I had Old Bay seasoning and not Cajun. Had absolutely no flavor even with way too much salt. Maybe I can get the right spice today and add it to the leftovers.

Love this! I had one leftover chicken breast from a package last night and I wasn't sure what to do with it. I'm not a linguine fan, but I have some penne I'll use instead. And no mushrooms because I'm 26 and I'm still a picky kid at heart ;)

I just made this last night and everyone LOVED it! My 5 year old daughter said, "I'm not eating that!" but I told her she had to at least try it and she devoured it! My husband loved the mushrooms and how colorful it was. Awesome as always Gina! I used the Barilla multigrain pasta which is similar to the one you used but cheaper.

So I shouldn't really be reviewing because I changed the recipe a little bit, but I always tend to modify Gina's recipes to accommodate what I have on hand! And this was so good, I HAD to share it! A while back I had this absolutely delicious cajun shrimp dish at a restaurant in Chicago. It was linguini with shrimp and mixed veggies in a spicy, creamy, mustard sauce. I'm pretty sure the original was laden with fat so I haven't tried to recreate it but when I saw this recipe I thought, why not use this as a base!

I used shrimp instead of chicken and treated it the same as specified in this recipe. I also used half a bunch of asparagus instead of one of the peppers because that is what I happened to have, and substituted 2tbsp of dijon mustard for the cream cheese. Barilla whole grain linguine and a healthy dose of cayenne pepper were the only other changes. YUM!!! Just like the awesome restaurant dish without all the fat! I think the Chicago version also had capers so I might add that next time, but this was still a superb dish!

Oh and I used a whisk to mix the slurry. The thicker cream cheese probably needed something more, but the thinner mustard did just fine with a small whisk. Easier cleanup too!

I also think that for next time I will skip the tomatoes. Not because they were bad or anything, not by any means, I just think that a tomato free sauce with mustard and capers is closer to what I remember from the restaurant.

Gina, you have my full permission to repost this with my changes if you'd like, I'm sure it would be thoroughly enjoyed by all! ;)

I just had my gallbladder out and I have had to eat low fat for the last month. I was getting so sick of chicken so I wanted to find a more exciting recipe. Well this was awesome! my husband and I LOVED it!

This dish is delicious, easy, & quick. I had all of the ingredients except for the light cream cheese...I used 3 wedges of laughing cow-garlic & herb cheese instead. For an extra veggie...I threw in some fresh spinach. My husband, daughter, & I had this for lunch & supper. It was great!!! Definitely cooking this again. I'm on weight watchers...your recipes helps keep the progress of weight loss easy. They are so full of flavor & keeps mealtime interesting.

Saw this yesterday and I had to try it. It was AWESOME! I didn't feel guilty about eating it. My husband loved it too. The only thing I did different is I only used one bell pepper. I dont usually follow recipes but with this one I'm glad I did!!

Made this last night - SO amazing. I have been making your recipes here and there for the past year or so - never mentioning to my boyfriend (who claims he hates anything diet) that these were lo-cal meals. I went back to Weight Watchers last week and have been making your recipes every night - this time letting him know that they are from Skinny Taste. He has been raving!!! Made the Sweet and Fiery Pork Tenderloin with Mango Salsa 2 nights ago, which received excellent reviews. You are the best!!!

Gina, This is excellent!!! my husband said, this recipe is in his top 5 all time favorite dishes!! My son, who I call lovingly Top Chef Thomas said it is new favorite pasta dish. I loved it too but to get reviews like that from your family makes cooking at the end of a exhausting work day all worth it! Maryanne

Love It!!! My family wants me to try adding shrimp or smoked sausage to the recipe the next time I make it. It sure doesn't taste like a light recipe. I did add more cajun seasoning and a little more salt.

I've been waiting to make this since you posted it and boy it was delicious! Even my veggie hating fiance loved it (with the veggies taken out of course, but usually he doesn't even like the flavoring). It was also soooo filling for 6 old points! I'll be having this for lunch tomorrow for sure!

I gave up pasta for Lent, but luckily I saw this recipe beforehand. I made it the Sunday before Lent started and now I think I have to make it for Easter. It was so delicious. And it was a beautiful plate of food with all those colorful peppers and red onions. Thanks for all your yummy meals.

Gina, this recipe is AMAZING! I've never made a dish like this before, but seeing your instructions made it seem like something I would be able to do, and I am so glad I did! I will definitely add this to my list of regulars now. Thank you!

Gina - I have made this twice now, the first time with shrimp and the second with chicken and shrimp. Once again you've got a winner, this morning one of the people I shared the recipe also said she made it last night and they loved it as well. I have to add that since I came across your site at the start of the year I've made one of your recipes every week and after two months I'd say I have a minimum of three of your dishes per week. THANK YOU!!!!!

Gina, I have made quite a few of your recipes and loved them all, but never made the time to comment on them until now. I made this the other night omitting the mushrooms because I don't like them and I used penne because it was all I had in the house. I have to tell you that it was by far the best dish I have had in a long time. I could have eaten the entire pan of it! Of course, that would defeat the purpose of trying to cook and eat lighter, healthier stuff. You are awesome! Thanks for the recipes! ~Andrea

This is AMAZING!!! I love all the recipes on your site and make at least two per week, this is hands down my favorite. I have picky eaters so we left out all the veggies except the peppers which we doubled. I had to add a small amount of corn starch to thicken up the sauce, though I'm sure with the suggested veggies I wouldn't have needed it.

This was very good and the whole family loved it. The only thing I'll change next time is to use a lighter hand with the cajun seasoning, but that is no criticism. I added zucchini and since I had no tomatoes, I used one can of diced (drained) and some sun dried tomatoes that I did have. This was loaded with flavor! Bravo and thank you!!

I just made this for dinner tonight. It was really good! To those who said it was watery...It is at first but if you let it sit for 10 or so minutes and stir it up , it thickens up nicely! I can hardly wait to make it w/ shrimp!

This cajun pasta recipe is the BEST pasta dish I've ever made!!! So flavorful and tastes so delicious!! A friend introduced me to your site a few months ago and my family loves your recipes!!! I love that you include the old WW pts on your recipes, and that the majority of your recipes seem to call for REAL ingredients. I feel great about serving these recipes to my family. Thank you so much for sharing your recipes with us! I hope you know what a positive difference you are making for so many families across the world!! :)

Just made this...it was awesome! Thanks so much Gina, for all of your recipes. I rarely cook anything thats not one of your recipes. I talk about your website so much that I'm sure my friends think that I'm your long lost relative!

I made this last night and LOVED it! I brought leftovers for lunch and can't wait to devour them. I just want to thank you for all of your delicious recipes. I have loved all that I've tried so far and am looking forward to trying more.

Gina! Thank you for your cooking skills and knowledge. God has truly blessed you with your gift and you keep on giving. Your purpose is definately being fulfilled. This recipe was amazing, I didn't have any cream so I used 2 laughing cow "garlic & herb wedges. I just discovered your site recently and have tried 3 recipes and all were good.

I made this tonight, OMG...absolutely delish!! Love your skinny recipes Gina, they make me so happy..:)My husband just loves coming home to the great smells coming from our kitchen every night...Thanks again:)

This meal was amazing! I think it is the best meal I've ever cooked. I did change a couple things. I used 2% milk because that's what I had and I used regular cream cheese, not lite. I also cooked all the chicken at one time...not sure why the recipe asked to cook it 1/2 at a time. I also used regular chicken broth & oil instead of cooking spray just cause this is what I had on hand. So my version is the higher fat but tasted so, so good!

Gena, I've been wanting to write a comment about this for a while now. This is hands down the best lightened up cajun dish I have ever tried. My husband and I always made jokes about the cajun recipes in the ww magazines because any time we tried them they were not even close to cajun. i was a little nervous about trying this for the same reason, but we love so many of your recipes i gave it a try. amazing. outstanding. delicious. thank you so much!suzanne

I just made this dish tonight, and my family all loved it. It was one of those dishes that makes you consider picking up the plate and licking all the sauce right off.... Just a quick question, though. I ended up with servings larger than what was listed. Perhaps I used more tomato or my peppers were bigger? Is the calorie count pretty much the same, as long as it is divided 5 ways?

Absolutely delish! Thanks for sharing--it's going in my permanent recipe box to be used often! I've been recommending your site to people at work when they comment on how tasty my leftovers smell (and they know I'm on Weight Watchers!)--you have a true culinary talent! :)

Loved this! I had to use 1% milk rather than skim, but otherwise followed the recipe and it turned out fantastic. I like a thicker sauce, so I made a cornstarch/water slurry and added it before I put the chicken back in - and it thickened up perfectly, especially once I added the pasta. I can't wait for the leftovers tomorrow night. :)

I made this last night, and it was fabulous. My husband took one bite and asked if there would be leftovers for his lunch the next day. The chicken was very flavorful and the sauce was just the right texture and thickness -- creamy and spicy! I will definitely make this again -- and again....

This looks really yummy, but my husband cannot handle ANY trace of spice - i thought i saw someone say that creole seasoning tastes similar to cajun but without the spice -- is this true? I can only use it if there is zero spice

if that is not the case, can anyone suggest to me a different seasoning i can use that would provide me with similar flavours?

Probably my favorite recipe of yours... so far. This is was so good!!! I don't really even like pasta that much and this is rocked! I even ate the leftovers cold! I didn't have onions on hand but the flavor was still spot on. In the future I might make just a little more sauce and maybe try adding a little corn starch to thicken it up.

This was absolutely delicious! My household thoroughly enjoyed this recipe. Easy to make too, and didn't miss the heavy cream mess.Thanks for all your hard work giving us good on-the-lighter-side recipes.

Gina, This one had picked my curiousity a while back but I did not have the time to do it....well well, I've been missing out. We just had this tonight and we all LOVED IT! I did add a bit of Chili seasoning to my own dish and almost licked the bottom. Thank you for this amazing recipe...keep em coming :)